1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of computer systems and database technology. More specifically an embodiment of the present invention relates to the field of portable electronic devices, such as personal digital assistants (PADs), cell phones, pagers, etc.
2. Related Art
Electronic organizers were introduced to the market years ago. These devices were commonly used to store and maintain address books, telephone listings and daily activity schedules albeit with limited number of records due to limited storage capacity. Subsequent development of such devices introduced limited capability calculating functions, weekly and monthly scheduling xe2x80x9cto do listsxe2x80x9d and business card files. The most noticeable developments in this family of devices, in the recent years, are increased memory size, reduced physical size, communication capabilities and increased functionality.
The recent emergence of Personal Digital Assistant, commonly known as PDA, introduced a new type of organizers. The PDA""s have capability to store telephone numbers, addresses, daily appointments and software that keeps track of business or personal data such as expenses. Furthermore, present PDAs have the capability to synchronize to a personal computer, thus enabling the two devices to exchange updated information together. Additionally, the PDA can connect to a modem, enabling it to have electronic mail (e-mail) capabilities. Another recent development in PDA technology is capability to browse Web pages located on the Internet and synchronize, e.g., HotSync, with another device or with a compatible personal computer. Moreover, an advanced PDA can have Internet capabilities to communicate over a wireless interface. (e.g. radio interface).
A typical PDA user often uses the device during a business meeting. The user can easily access his/her customized telephone directory, schedule business activities, send and receive e-mails, and connect to the Internet. More advanced PDA devices, such as hand-held computer systems, have the capability to exchange certain category of information such as an electronic business card.
The advent of business and personal cards has facilitated such an exchange of information to a great degree. Through the years, the purpose of such an exchange has remained the same but the need for the exchange of information grew rapidly with the growth of society and with information technology.
The introduction of electronic business cards to the business community has proven to be a success. Nowadays, beaming an electronic business card to a business partner in a business meeting is rather common and considered an exercise of efficiency. Electronic exchange of business cards is gradually replacing the traditional exchange of paper business cards at business meetings as well as at the variety of social gatherings.
The exchange of electronic business cards between owners of electronic devices may have been first introduced in the business communities. The purpose for the exchange of business cards between business associates still remains the same and it is designed to invite possible future contacts. Social gatherings are no exception to this practice and the same exchange of information takes place everyday and at all levels of social gathering or other special events.
The type of information exchanged during these different events is not the same. One who is seeking a future business contact is interested in different information than the one who seeks a future social contact. The information on a business card may include business telephone number, business address, business fax number, and business e-mail. On the other hand, the information on a personal card may merely include personal information and no business related information, (i.e., home telephone number, home address home fax number and other personal information).
Furthermore, people are often in situations where neither their business cards nor their personal cards contains the sort of information they wish to share with another person in that particular occasion. In a particular occasion, one may wish to share some of the information on his/her business card with another person but not all of the information on that card. The situation can even be worst when one wishes to exclude some of the information on a particular card and add some other information on that same card.
To overcome such problems, in the past, people often carried different cards for different occasions. One might have carried a stack of business cards; for instance, a stack of personal related cards and another stack relating to his/her social activities. Depending upon the nature of social or business occasion, he/she would reach into a stack of different cards and would sort out the right card for the occasion. Carrying a number of single purpose paper cards is generally voluminous and awkward. Aside from the bulkiness of the cards, managing the cards and sorting them out at the time of exchange is inconvenient and time consuming.
This need arises from the fact that the user of such devices is not just associating with a group of business associates. They may have other people with whom they have daily contacts. A user of such device may want to exchange his electronic business card with a business associate in one occasion and immediately thereafter, in another occasion, exchange an electronic card with a casual friend. The user, most probably, does not want to include his home telephone number in the former exchange of electronic business card and not to include his professional title or other very formal information in the latter case.
Presently a convenient method for exchange of different electronic business cards is not available in the marketplace.
Embodiments of the present invention enable an owner of a handheld electronic device to select or edit and transmit an electronic card from a number of different cards defined and stored in the device. The stored cards in the device include business cards as well as personal cards categorized for use in different occasions. When the user of a device attempts to transmit an electronic card, the device displays the list of all available electronic cards on its display screen. The user then has the option of selecting and transmitting one card from a number of different cards, which most appropriately fits the occasion. Furthermore, embodiments of this invention enable the user to edit and customize any selected card to fit the particular purpose and occasion.
These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will no doubt become obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art after having read the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment which are illustrated in the various drawing figures.
Specifically, the present invention discloses a method and a system for selecting one set of data from among multiple related data sets and beaming the data set from one handheld electronic device to another handheld electronic device. An embodiment of the present invention discloses a method and system for selectively transmitting business cards from one device to another device. The transmitter of the business card makes a selection of the business card from multiple categories of business cards and upon review of the business cards on the screen will decide to send or not to send the selected card. In another embodiment, the transmitter can edit the business card and make appropriate changes before transmitting it to the other device. In one embodiment, if the transmitter of the business card attempts to transmit a business card from a category, which does not have a pre-defined business card, the system will issue a warning. In response to the warning, the user has the choice of sending a business card from those categories with pre-defined business card or sending a pre-defined default business card.
In one embodiment of this invention the device transmits an electronic business card from the active category at the time of beaming. In case the active category does not have a pre-defined business or personal card, a warning by the system notifies the user of the status. The user then may select to send a card from another category with a pre-defined electronic card or he/she may decide to send a xe2x80x9cDEFAULTxe2x80x9d card. The active category may be the active category during the last session with the device or a category selected by the current user of the device.
In one embodiment, the user requests to transmit an electronic business card by pressing the appropriate button designed for beaming electronic business cards. Alternatively, a menu navigation to a beam option can be done. A business card from the active category will automatically be transmitted if there is a pre-defined electronic card in that active category. If the active category does not have a pre-defined electronic business card, or when the active category is the xe2x80x9cALLxe2x80x9d category, this embodiment causes the device to present the user with a warning. The warning states that the current category is either without a pre-defined electronic card or the active category is xe2x80x9cALLxe2x80x9d category. The user is given a choice of selection between 1) transmitting an electronic card from another category with pre-defined card or 2) transmitting the pre-defined xe2x80x9cDEFAULTxe2x80x9d card. The active category is that category last used by the user to obtain information.
For example, assume that the user has not defined an electronic business card for the xe2x80x9cFAMILY RELATIVESxe2x80x9d category but has defined an electronic business card for all other named categories. Assume further, that the user is in a situation that he/she needs to transmit an electronic card to a person he/she just met. Even further assume that during the last session with the device category was left on xe2x80x9cFAMILY RELATIVESxe2x80x9d before the session was terminated. The user turns the system on and attempts to transmit an electronic card. The user will be immediately warned that the active category is xe2x80x9cFAMILY RELATIVESxe2x80x9d and there is no pre-defined electronic personal card for that category. Following such a warning, this embodiment gives the user the choice of sending a card from another category with a pre-defined electronic card or sending the xe2x80x9cDEFAULTxe2x80x9d card.
In another embodiment, the user has a number of pre-defined business and personal cards, which can be transmitted without any change or modification. When the user wishes to transmit a card, the user presses the appropriate button on the first device, thus requesting transmission of an electronic card. The device displays the list of all pre-defined business or personal cards. Corresponding to each card there is a label. The label is designed to select the corresponding business or personal card when a box corresponding to that card is pressed for a predetermined duration. The user can then transmit the particular business card by tapping the appropriate label.
In another embodiment, the user of the device is given the choice of modifying the electronic card before transmission. The user has pre-defined a business/personal card in his/her electronic device. When the occasion arises for transmission of the business card, the user displays an available business card on the display screen. This embodiment enables the user to modify any one or several fields of the selected card to fit the requirement of the user before the user decides to transmit the card to another device. Once the user edits the business card appropriate for the occasion, the user transmits the edited card by pressing the xe2x80x9cBEAMxe2x80x9d or done button on the display screen. For example, the user may wish to transmit an electronic business card to a family member but he does not have family member category. In such situations, the user can display an existing electronic business or personal card and edit the fields as required by the situation. The user may want to add his home fax number or may wish to add another home telephone number to the card, or delete information, which he/she would not normally share with non-family members.